Longmont Times-Call: Opportunities, pitfalls with legalized pot

Posted:
01/10/2013 08:35:35 AM MST

With the passage of Amendment 64, which legalized recreational marijuana use, the eyes of the nation have turned to Colorado.

Because Colorado is the first (along with Washington) to have to deal with the myriad questions about growing, packaging, selling, using and living with what was previously an illegal drug, state lawmakers will have to navigate uncharted waters.

The challenge is also an opportunity to define a structure that could end up being a model for other states whose voters choose to go down this path -- or, alternatively, an opportunity to show other states the pitfalls of regulatory efforts.

Among the important issues to deal with is ensuring the safety on the state's roads and highways, achieved by creating a system for testing those who may be driving under the influence of marijuana. Currently, technology can tell whether a person has used marijuana, but it cannot pinpoint the window of time in which such use has occurred. Unlike alcohol, which is purged from the system within hours of use, the active ingredient in marijuana can stay in a user's system for as long as 30 days. Also, roadside sobriety tests of balance, coordination and mental capacity are effective for alcohol users but less so with marijuana.

Lawmakers need to find a way to get an accurate test for a user's level of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, while protecting the rights of a person who might not have used the substance for a week or more. Urine and hair tests might need to be added to blood tests as a gauge for marijuana use, even if results might not be known for days.

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In the meantime, training of law enforcement personnel on the behaviors of marijuana-impaired drivers will have to increase.

Driving under the influence of marijuana is only one of many issues, however.

When voters passed Amendment 64, many in the state's political establishment were caught off guard. Now they have the chance to make sure the will of the voters is observed while ensuring the state does not become a magnet for the lawless or worse, an anathema to businesses that otherwise would want to be in Colorado.